A conversation with the captain

If you’re lucky, you might just run into him one weekday at the 1940 Air Terminal Museum.

The man, 86 to be exact, comes off as a friendly volunteer. He’ll tell you about events going on at the museum or about the building’s history. But chat with him just a little bit longer and you’ll see that A.J. High — informally called the captain — is more than a volunteer.

He’s a living historical figure.

One day — hopefully a long time from now — when some reporter at this newspaper sets out to write his obituary, that person won’t know where to begin. With more than 40 years and 40,000 hours of flight time, High has witnessed quite a few historic moments.

“In fact, they call me walking history in here,” High told me recently.

A lot of those events were recently published in his memoir, Meant to Fly: The Career of Captain A.J. High, Pilot for Trans-Texas Airways. High got some help from historian Kathryn Black Morrow, who you might recall published a book about the history of Ellington Field. Copies of High’s memoir are on sale at the museum.

High, a World War II veteran, was part of the first group of pilots hired by Trans-Texas Airways. By 1967, High worked his way up to vice president of flight operations for the airline.

But the call of being a pilot was too great and, in 1971, High was back in the pilot’s seat. His last flight was for Continental Airlines on April 7, 1983, the day before his 60th birthday (and when his federally mandated retirement went into effect).

We talked about his military and civilian career. His book shows it’s clear that High had a lot of close calls.

Take, for instance, the time he found himself behind the controls of a B-29 that had done a snap roll. For those unfamiliar, it pretty much turns the plane upside down.

So then, how does one survive a snap roll in a B-29?

“I was wondering that myself when it happened,” High said, noting that the plane was no longer flightworthy after that. “We used that airplane from then on just to practice bailout and practice water landings.”

Speaking of water landings, we talked for a little bit about Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger and his successful Hudson River landing earlier this year. High said Sullenberger’s military experience was evident.

“I watched that deal, and I told my wife, ‘That is textbook. That is right out of the book. He did it perfectly.’

“I’d love to have him as my co-pilot. He’s a very calm, cool, collected gentleman. And he’s a Texan.”

High has had his share of historic moments over the course of his career. For example, in June 1969, he made the first official landing at Intercontinental Airport.

But what struck me as fascinating was the time he took off from Houston Municipal Air Terminal the morning of April 16, 1947.

“We had just taken off there,” High said, motioning toward what used to be a runway outside the terminal. “(We were) getting ready to make our left-hand turn to head back to Dallas when I looked and said, ‘My god what is that?’

“I saw a billowing black smoke just coming up. I didn’t really see any fire. I just saw the smoke coming up. And it had just gone off because it was still blossoming.”

High and his crew didn’t know of the tragedy unfolding at Texas City until they landed hours later.

In the end, High makes note that of all the harrowing flights he endured throughout his career, he never once scratched the paint on an airplane.

“My life has been fun,” he said. “Of course there have been some sad moments. Not enough to get me down. I’ve always been on the high side. I’m just that kind of person. I don’t let things drag me under.